MOTO X

Motorola has just sent out press invites to a July 28th event that promises to "change our relationship status." Other than the coy message, there's few details about what will be announced, except for that events will be held in both New York City and London. Seeing as how the last 48 hours alone have seen leaks of both the new Moto G and Moto X, it seems likely we'll be hearing about a new phone.

The Android update to version 5.1 Lollipop has been launched for several smartphones over the past week, and two more today for Motorola. As of this week the original Motorola Moto X has been cleared for early landing with a "soak test" for the software on AT&T. We'll be expecting Android 5.1 Lollipop for the original Moto X on other carriers soon - AT&T appears to be the first to be bringing this software to the masses for the first Moto X this week.

Updates to the newest version of fully-released Android version 5.1 Lollipop have come to the Moto X. This is the second-edition Moto X, the one that comes with a wooden back if you do so choose. This update comes soon after the first Moto X - believe it or not - started receiving the update, continuing Motorola's surprisingly good track record for keeping their devices from the past several years up to date with the newest software from Google. Next up is Android M, otherwise suspected to be called M&M or Marshmallow.

Wireless contracts and subsidies might soon be a thing of the past. At least in a perfect world, perfect except for carriers maybe. The number of people buying devices off-contract, as well as the number of those devices being offered, have increasingly grown. Manufacturers like Huawei are thinking up of ways to encourage buyers to ditch subsidies. Motorola is joining that fray by making a new offer for those buying the Moto X without contracts. Try it out for 30 days and, if you don't like it, return it for free.

It's hard to believe that it has already been seven months since the 2014 Moto X was unveiled, which means there just 5 months left until the next generation. Unless Lenovo/Motorola decides on an August date just like the first Moto X. Naturally, we're beginning to hear of supposed insider info on what the 2015 Moto X will be like, which does sound a bit too good to be true at times. However, it could very well be a litmus test of whether Motorola can keep up with the fame it built back when it was still under Google's care.

Turning on the flashlight on your Android phone takes a few swipes, typically. It’s not hard, but fumbling in the dark can be annoying. Bright screens can blind you while you find your way to the flashlight. Handy, the feature for smartphones is also largely unnatural. We’re used to flicking a switch on a flashlight in-hand, not swiping through screens! Continuing on the gesture-driven path, Motorola has added ‘chop twice for flashlight’, which brings the flashlight feature up on the Moto X with a few swats.

With Motorola, you pretty much know what you’re getting. There are a few really good smartphones that make a mark at their respective price points, and a wearable. There are even a few neat accessories. At Mobile World Congress this week, Motorola President Rick Osterloh said nothing was going to change, either. Motorola will continue to iterate on their stuff, but will stay their course. Interestingly, Osterloh also suggests Motorola is probably done with tablets, a sector best left to Lenovo, in his view.

Though Jony Ive may disagree, Motorola has a lot going for them. After a brief stint at Google to recalibrate themselves, they’re now under the auspices of Lenovo. They’re doing really good work, too, with the new Moto X winning much praise while the Moto 360 makes a home on wrists. That tandem might not be enough, though, and the company has begun hinting that more is on the way. In an email to some press, Moto says they’re ready to seed something new.

Whether you use Apple products or not, you have to admit; they’re really gorgeous, masterfully crafted devices. Jony Ive and his crew dedicate a lot of time and energy into creating some really great hardware, so his views on the subject of design should be treated with a level of respect. I mean, the guy was knighted — he’s probably worth hearing out. Still, the guy running Motorola was non-plussed about recent statements Ive made. Though he didn’t specifically call Motorola out, Ive’s comments were pretty transparent.

When Lenovo purchased Motorola from Google, the collective mind share assumed Lenovo wanted inroads into the North American smartphone market to spread their own devices to carriers. That might be true, but the opposite end of the spectrum is having the more immediate impact. In China, where the mobile handset market is bursting at the seams, Apple and Xiaomi are quickly asserting themselves. No to be left out, Lenovo-owned Motorola announced their flagship Moto X would become available for pre-order on January 27. They’ve already got one million potential customers.

Now that Chinese company Lenovo holds the reins over Motorola, it was only natural that the smartphone maker will be making its presence known in one of the fastest growing mobile market in the world. All that will start this year with the arrival of three Motorola smartphones in the Chinese market. But Motorola has one rather odd surprise to add to its other odd surprises last year. There's a new Moto X Pro in tow, but, for all intents and purposes aside from the branding, it's basically the Nexus 6.

The largest amount of internal storage ever offered on the Moto X has been pushed to the 2014 edition with the Moto X 64GB Pure Edition. This device will be shipped with a "Pure" setup inside, meaning you'll get Google's Android apps, Motorola's Android apps, and no carrier apps. This version of the device is GSM-enabled, meaning you'll be using T-Mobile USA or AT&T in the United States. This unit comes with a T-Mobile SIM pre-inserted, and works with both AT&T and T-Mobile 4G LTE.